Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card vs. Ink Business Premier® Credit Card

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Business owners have a lot of options when it comes to credit cards. Two popular ones are the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card and the Ink Business Premier® Credit Card. These cards offer similar benefits, but they also have some distinct differences. We compare them so you can choose the best fit for your business.

Welcome Offer

Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card: Earn 100,000 bonus points after you spend $8,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s equal to $1,000 cash back, or $1,250 towards travel when redeemed through Chase Travel.

Ink Business Premier® Credit Card: Earn $1,000 bonus cash back after you spend $10,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

Which is best for you depends on how your business spends money and how much you spend. You have to spend more to earn the offer with the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, but the offer is also worth more if you redeem it for travel.

Cash Back Rewards

Here’s where one card will probably stand out as the better fit for your business.

Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card offers 3x points per dollar spent on select business purchases, up to $150,000 a year (see categories listed below). Most businesses spend a good bit of money in these categories.

Ink Business Premier® Credit Card offers 2.5% cash back on purchases over $5,000 and 2% cash back on all other purchases. You also get 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase. Cash back is unlimited and never expires as long as the account is open.

Keep in mind that Ink Business Premier® Credit Card is a charge card, not a credit card. A charge card means the balance must be paid in full every month, although qualified purchases can be paid over time with Flex for Business. A business must be large enough to have enough cash flow to pay off the card every month.

Here are the details for each card.

Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

Rewards:

Ink Business Premier® Credit Card

Rewards:

Rates and Fees

Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card has an annual fee of $95, whereas the Ink Business Premier® Credit Card has an annual fee of $195.

Neither card is offering a 0% APR introductory offer right now, and neither card has foreign transaction fees.

Who the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card is Best For

The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card is a great option for small business owners who want cash back rewards on their many varied business expenses. It’s an especially good card for businesses just getting off the ground that can incur enough expenses to meet the welcome bonus in the first months of operation. Keep in mind you can hand out cards to your employees at no cost to help you meet the welcome bonus requirement. If you’re worried that your employees might get carried away, you can also set up spending limits on each card.

Another great benefit is cell phone protection, up to $1,000. And your points are worth 25% more when you redeem them for travel through Chase Travel, so if you travel for business or pleasure, this card is more than worth the annual fee. You can add the points your employees earn to your account, which is another bonus.

Who the Ink Business Premier® Credit Card is Best For

The Ink Business Premier® Credit Card offers a terrific welcome bonus and generous cash back rewards. It’s a charge card, although you can pay for certain purchases over time, with interest. Just like the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card card, you can get as many employee cards as you want for no fee. You get cell phone protection with this card as well.

Although this card earns Chase Ultimate Rewards^® points, unlike other Chase cards you can’t transfer the points to another card. Usually, you can combine your points from any lower-tier Chase card with the points from a higher-tier card like the Chase Sapphire Reserve® and get a boost in value. But you can’t do that with this card, nor can you transfer them to airline or hotel partners. The points you earn will earn about 0.01 each, and you can’t transfer them. You can redeem them for gift cards, cash back, or statement credits. So, if you travel a great deal, this might not be the best fit for you. It could be a great fit for a high-spend business that just wants to earn cash back on every purchase.

Does it Make Sense to Get Both Cards?

You could, but to justify both, you’d have to spend $25,000 in the first three months to get both welcome bonuses. These cards are targeting two different markets: the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card is best for smaller business owners and startups, whereas the Ink Business Premier® Credit Card goes after large businesses that covet the elevated bonus and cash back rewards and don’t mind paying in full every month.

If you think you can make use of both cards, keep in mind that to apply for a business card with Chase you need to be under 5/24. Meaning if you applied for five or more credit cards in the last 24 months, you likely won’t be approved for another Chase card. Once you get the business card though, it should not count toward your 5/24 status.

Approval Odds

The credit score data listed below comes from publicly available information in several forums. The accuracy of the information cannot be verified. Keep in mind that credit card issuers consider more than an applicant’s credit score and that underwriting standards change over time.

Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

Ink Business Premier® Credit Card

Since both cards are issued by Chase, approval scores are pretty similar, and you’ll need excellent credit to be approved for either card.